The Denver Nuggets squandered yet another late lead Monday, losing to the Toronto Raptors on the road 105-102. The Nuggets are now 1-2 on the young season. Here is a look at the good, bad and questionable from Denver’s third game of the year.
The Good: They’re fighting
Denver showed resilience once again. The Nuggets were down 19 points in the second half to the Raptors and managed to mount a comeback, even going ahead by as many as six points in the fourth quarter. So far, Denver looks like it’s going to be competitive in every game down to the finish. This is something that definitely could not be said a year ago.
The Bad: Will Barton‘s ankle
Will Barton sprained his left ankle in the second half and left the game. Barton spoke to Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post about his injury after the game.
“It’s just sore, a bad sprain, a real bad sprain,” Barton said. “My foot stepped on one of the big guys’ feet from Toronto and just turned as soon as I touched it.”
We will know in time how long Barton will be sidelined. Look for rookie Jamal Murray to play a larger role in Barton’s absence.
The Question: The rotation
For the second consecutive game, Denver had a late lead and failed to close. Michael Malone needs to find a consistent rotation in the fourth quarter. Jusuf Nurkic got the late minutes on Monday, while Nikola Jokic was on the bench and limited to only 22 minutes. Jokic and Nurkic are not playing well when on the court together; however, Malone needs to find a way to get both big men over 30 minutes per game. The Nuggets could easily be 3-0 if Malone can put together the right lineup in the clutch. Unfortunately nobody knows what that right combination is.
Next up: The Nuggets will be at the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday. This will be a very exciting matchup featuring the two up-and-coming teams in the Northwest Division.